STEM Education

STEM at Orlando Science Schools

S.T.E.M. or S.T.E.A.M., depending on the event, is a phenomenal program at OSS! Students are exposed to science throughout the week during the designated as well as other subjects since many units are cross-curricular. S.T.E.M. Days are held quarterly for many grade levels so students are able to dive deeper into S.T.E.M. and spend the entire day learning and growing with S.T.E.M. Students are exposed to S.T.E.M. through quarterly daytime events, evening and weekend S.T.E.M. themed events, guest speakers, virtual field trips, Skype interviews, and lessons taught by the Curriculum Coach. Mrs. Trujillo will visits all of the classrooms this year and teach engaging S.T.E.M. lessons as well as support all of the teachers in their implementation of S.T.E.M. Teachers may pick from the monthly S.T.E.M. theme or ask for a lesson that is tailored to that class. There are at least eight S.T.E.M. themed events planned for the 2015-2106 school year. Most will be held in the evenings or on weekends so the student’s families may also participate. S.T.E.M. is not just something that is added onto the schedule. It is interwoven into the units of study, goes along with the standards, and is cross-curricular so students learn and understand the topics.

The Great Soda War of 2015

The Great Soda War of 2015 has begun! So far all of first and third grade have watched the soda and mentos geysers. Diet Coke seems to be staying on top since it has shot very far in the sky. Orange soda challenged Diet Coke during the third grade challenge but still fell short. The key to an excellent soda and mentos geyser is how you pull the string. At least that is what third grade learned since a few of the bottles tipped over. That's ok since it just means there needs to be a rematch. Which grade should join us in The Great Soda War of 2015? Watch the website for more videos and pictures. Want to complete the challenge at home? Families can check out the soda geyser tube for an overnight attempt at the tallest soda geyser. Send in your pictures and videos to Mrs. Trujillo and let her know if you would like to check out the soda geyser tube.

3D PRINTER

3D printing -- also known as additive manufacturing -- turns digital 3D models into solid objects by building them up in layers. The technology was first invented in the 1980s, and since that time has been used for rapid prototyping (RP). However, in the last few years, 3D printing technology has additionally started to evolve into a next-generation manufacturing technique. This shift has allowed for the potential to create local, on-demand production of final products or parts thereof.

Already it is possible to 3D print with a wide range of materials that include thermoplastics, thermoplastic composites, pure metals, metal alloys, ceramics and various forms of food. Right now, 3D printing as an end-use manufacturing technology is still in its infancy. But in the coming decades, and in combination with synthetic biology and nanotechnology, it has the potential to radically transform many design, production and logistics processes. (http://explainingthefuture.com/3dprinting.html)

Here at school we have a MakerBot replicator.

This 3D printer is used at the campus for many educational purposes. We have uses it to make awards for competition entry and in lessons on flotation and buoyancy. During our buoyancy lessons, students first test items to see if they float or sink. The second part involves designing boats out of clay and aluminum foil to place pennies and marbles in each boat to see how many they would hold. The final part of the lesson tests student designs against different types of 3D printed boats to compare both marbles and pennies to see how buoyant the printed materials would be.